Precipitation-runoff relationship at the Upper Basin of the Virgin River, Utah

144 Pages·1993·3.8 MB·English

by  Diaz, G.E., Ismael, T.

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Precipitation-Runoff Relationship
at the Upper Basin of the
Virgin River, Utah.
by
Dr. Gustavo E. Diaz
and
Tarmizi Ismael
Dept. of Civil Engineering
Colorado State University
August 1993
Fort Collins, Colorado 80523
MMSettAL fARK SEitVICF
WaterKesottfces Division
FortCtt&K, Color&dc
Resource PoemPtopertv
Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2012 with funding from
LYRASIS Members and Sloan Foundation
http://archive.org/details/precipitationrunOOdiaz
11
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
INTRODUCTION
1.0 1
1. Purpose of the Study 1
1.2 Scope of the Study 1
STUDY AREA
2.0 3
2.1 Location 3
2.2 Principal Basin Features 3
RAINFALL-RUNOFF RELATION
3.0 6
3.1 Previous Work Related to the Study 6
3.2 Runoff Coefficient 7
3.3 Mean Areal Precipitation and K Values 8
GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM
4.0 11
4.1 Role of Geographic Information System 11
4.2 Maps Characteristics 12
4.3 Spatial Analysis 13
5.0 STREAMFLOW AND PRECIPITATION DATA 17
5.1 Surface Runoff Records 17
5.2 Water Depletions 17
5.3 Precipitation Records 24
6.0 TRANSFER OF PRECIPITATION INFORMATION 29
6.1 Statement of the Problem 29
6.2 Linear Regression Technique 30
6.3 Regression Results 32
6.4 Improvement of Estimates 35
6.5 Areal Distribution of Annual Precipitation 39
7.0 APPLICATION OF THE METHODOLOGY 45
7. Cases Under Analysis 45
7.2 Analysis and Results for Case I 46
7.3 Analysis and Results for Case II 50
7.4 Regression of Runoff Coefficients 54
7.5 Estimation of Mean-Annual Runoff at Ungaged Site 55
8.0 LITERATURE CITED 58
APPENDIX I Additional Results from Precipitation Data Transfer 60
APPENDIX II Annual Flows at USGS Gaging Stations in the Study Area ... 63

92457368
.
LIST OF FIGURES
Page
Fig.l The Study Area, Showing Hydrologic Subareas and Zion National Park 4
Fig. Drainage Boundary with Isohyet Lines 9
Fig. Flow-Chart for Generating Runoff Coefficient Curve 14
Fig. GIS Spatial Analysis Procedure 16
Fig. River Network and USGS Streamflow Gaging Stations 17
Fig. Main Water Depletions in the Zion Region 21
Fig. Monthly Distribution of Water Depletions 23
Fig. Location of Selected Precipitation Stations 25
Fig. Period of Records of Precipitation gaging Stations 27
Fig.10 Multiple-Regression of Annual Precipitation at Site (P) vs. Sites (C) and (M) 36
Fig. 11 Areal Distribution of Precipitation (Isohyetal Map) - Period [1932-1992] 43-44
Fig. 12 Annual Variability of Runoff Coefficients - Case I 48
Fig. 13 Runoff Coefficients vs. Explanatory Variables - Case II 53
Fig. 14 Precipitation Input vs. Drainage Area, Long-Term Conditions 56
LIST OF TABLES
Page
Table 1. Streamflow Gaging Stations Used in the Study, Basic Statistics 19
Table 2. Estimated Annual Water Depletions 20
Table 3. Precipitation Gaging Stations Used in the Study, Basic Information 26
Table 4. Annual Precipitation (in inches) at Selected Stations 28
Table 5. Parameters of the Regression Equations 33
Table 6. Improvement of the Estimate of the Mean 37
Table 7. Improvement of the Estimate of the Variance 38
Table 8. Relative Information Index 39
Table 9. Extended/Filled-In Annual Precipitation Records (inches/yr) 40
Table 10. Example of Input Data for Griding Algorithm 41
Table 11 Summary of Results for Case I 47
Table 12. Precipitation Data (in/yr) to Generate Isohyetal Maps for Case II 51
Table 13. Summary of Results for Case II 52
Table 14. Results of Regression Analysis - Case II 54
ii

INTRODUCTION
1.0
1.1 Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study is to assess the spatial variability of mean-annual flows in
Zion National Park (Zion) and its surrounding areas within the Upper Basin of the Virgin
River. The drastically changing topographical, geological, and climatological conditions
yield significant changes in the watersheds' water-yield. Changes in water-yield are
significant not only among different basins, but also along the course of a given stream.
The study implements a computational methodology for the estimation of long-term
mean annual discharge at ungaged river sites in the Upper Basin of the Virgin River, with
special consideration to the North Fork of the Virgin River. Estimates of mean annual
discharge at different river locations are necessary to support biological and channel
processes studies being conducted at Zion and adjacent areas.
Findings from this study should be used in conjunction with other hydrological
information provided by two previous reports, Diaz (1992) and Diaz (1993). In particular,
estimates of mean-annual flows at ungaged sites makes possible to calculate their duration
based on the parametric flow duration analysis presented in the first report, Chapter 6.
1.2 Scope of the Study
Given the limited number of stream gages with long and reliable records in the Zion
area, it was decided to estimate annual streamflows at ungaged locations based on main basin
characteristics, climatic data and historical streamflow data in the region. The methodology
will be based on relating statistically the variability of the runoff-precipitation ratio at
observed sites, to the regional physical and hydro-meteorological information indicated
above. Once these statistical relationships are defined, estimates of annual discharge at
ungaged sites can be obtained by just knowing topographic and climatic factors at the site of
interest.
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) became an extremely valuable tool during the
computational process as described later. The inherently spatial characteristics of practically

all data used in this study made the GIS an ideal tool for manipulating, analyzing and
displaying data and results. GIS was used to perform repetitive spatial analysis accurately
and speedily.
The report is organized as follows: Section 1 introduces the reader to the purpose
and objectives of the study. Section 2 locates geographically the study area and provides
brief information about the principal basin features and water uses. Section 3 provides an
overview of the most relevant techniques implemented by other authors to estimate
precipitation-runoff relationships. Moreover, it introduces the methodology utilized in this
study. Section 4 describes the merits of the GIS application developed for this study and the
spatial analysis procedure. Section 5 presents and discusses existing surface runoff and
precipitation records within the study region. The difference between exiting and natural
flow conditions is also discussed in Section 5. Section 6 focuses on the transfer of
information among precipitation stations within the study area in order to extend and/or
complete annual precipitation records. The areal distribution of annual precipitation is also
analyzed in this section. Finally, Section 7 presents the computation of the watersheds'
water-yield, and more specifically, the precipitation-runoff relation for the North Fork of the
Virgin River. It also provides an example of the estimation of mean annual flows at ungaged
sites. The report is concluded with literature references in Section 8, and appendixes I and
II, containing additional results of the regression analysis and annual flow records at the U.S.
Geological Survey gaging sites, respectively.